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Editor’s note:This is the second Top 25 of the offseason. The first was put out before most of the transfers and coaching changes took place. There will be another Top 25 put out after spring practice once I’ve had a chance to make the rounds. As we move closer to August, the picture will become much more clear.

1. Monrovia — The most complete team around. Period.2. Bishop Amat — Defense may not have size, but it has plenty of experience.3. West Covina — How to use Noodles, and where, the big question this spring.4. Charter Oak — Loss of leading passer/rusher will be very hard to overcome.5. Damien — Waiting to see what’s up this summer, but this could be No. 1 by fall.6. Chino Hills — High-upside team has talent, but lacks experience. Scary.7. La Habra — If you thought last year was a reload, wait until you see this year.8. St. Paul — New regime has been reportedly working hard to get talent infusion.9. La Mirada — Leading passer, rusher and receiver all back.10. St. Francis — QB returns, but there’s tons of question marks elsewhere.11. La Serna — QB Palmer is one of the best dual-threats around.12. Arcadia — Down compared to last year, but still solid enough to bang with most.13. San Dimas — Consistency, not talent, is program’s greatest attribute.14. Maranatha — Division switch should put Minutemen in thick of title chase.15. Muir — Loss of Talifero stings, but decent talent remains for new head coach.16. Duarte — By far the best transfer haul of the offseason.17. Cantwell — Skill talent is there to do damage in the Northwest.18. Arroyo — Can rely on ground game and defense until new QB is settled in.19. Pasadena — Insiders tell me how great things are, then later admit it’s a one-man show.20. San Gabriel — Hearing some very interesting things about SG. A team to watch!21. Bonita — New head coach/old staff. Bearcats should be solid if nothing else.22. Diamond Ranch — Really need to see what Roddy’s working with this spring.23. Azusa — Aztecs had to cringe at Duarte’s upgrades.24. Claremont — ‘Pack have decent skills, but need a toughness upgrade badly.25. Diamond Bar — Some of the best talent around in spots, but toughness?

Sam let’s see you son goes to Upland and your an Arcadia homer. Upland always good but not in SGV and Arcadia is just another D11 team. Get Real.

SGV FOOTBALL

Weak!!!

3 teams in the 10 ten from the same league not bad. Claremont at # 24 really.

Ceee-Ohhhh

3 peat at monrovia

Awe a breath of fresh Air. Aram, is spot on with these rankings. I know all of the SGV fans are going to bring up Division, and preseason schedule, League schedule, and competition Etc..Etc… All of the points are valid, and should be considered when making rakings. However this season is a little different than the past few years…Monrovia is #1. In the past this would be ridiculous. But this season, it’s correct. Not because, Monrovia, plays the best teams, or is in the Pac 5. It’s the players returning and acquired. Obviously Ainsworth was a huge addition to Monrovia’s offense. 1500 + yrds rushing at Covina, expect 2000 + this year at Monrovia. Next is QB Blake Heyworth; he can throw with the best of them, and he proved that at the nike sparq combine. He has ton’s of people to throw to. Especially the 2 returning WR’s Mason Bryant, and Anthony Craft, who already have D1 Offers and TE George Frazier, who has a D1 offer as well. With a Line lead by 3 year Starter Mivaret(Who will get a ride), and starting So’s coming back the Offense is loaded. The defense is lead by two 3 year starters in George Frazier V, and Brett Walsh who both will play on Saturdays with the addition of Ainsworth, the LB Core is going to be among the best in the SGV. Losing Ellis McCarthy is a big blow. However, there are some incoming Jr’s(don’t want to spill the beans) who are going to wonderful. Across the board this line will be as good as last years. The secondary lost 2 key DB’s in Ramirez and Williams, but Craft and Bryant will lead that group, and replacements are really good. This will be the first SR lead class in 4 years. These players have played together their whole careers and they all Started Varsity as sophomores w/ two rings. I think this may have been what Aram was thinking when he did the rankings. Now some will argue the same ol stuff, Div, league, schedule, which is all fine, but with 3 + players going D1 and the others sure to pick up offers, I don’t see a team in the SGV with more talent. These horses will be on display during the passing league circuit, and possibly in the Div 4 State title game. High hopes in M-town. I truly believed they match up with Anyone in the SGV “this” year. Football is a team sport, and talent alone will not win, but Maddox and staff are top notch, and they have found the formula for taking the talent rich Monrovia players and getting the best out of them. If you add Talent + Coaching + program. I think Cat’s are are right there.

Agola Prison

Monrovia huh, well dont crown them yet but they are LOADED. Thats a damn shame….. I dont think they will start slow this season as they know any and every team will be gunning for them

top 25

Solid Rankings. Mtown has to be #1 However, they can only fall. As a green and whiter…Only a 14-0, keeps them at the top. Otherwise, they would finish somewhere in the top 5 with a 3peat. They are going to be beast in the plus 1 game after winning the finals…I know ST Francis and Ayala will try to spoil a state title run. I also know Sierra Canyon and Paraclete are going to try to end the dynasty in the midvalley. Going to be a exciting year in Monrovia. More meaningful games. Final four in Midvalley…

Will they still be ranked #1 when they lose to the last place team in the Sierra league, South Hills, AGAIN????

Monrovian

Good afternoon everyone,

What a year for High School Football this is going to be. This list is pretty legit if I do say so myself, I am so proud of all our Cats, and proud of all their accomplishments to date. MonroVia has some whoppers in the cupboard and yes LOOK OUT FOR Brian Jones, a.k.a. “White Jones”, aka “White Lightning”, aka “White Chocolate”! The kid is HELL on wheels and will definitely be a force to be Reckoned with! Jacob Bueno should also make his mark this year, the kid is a hand full just like his older bro. Someone else Im excited to see is Mr. Ge’ Vontray Ainsworth, with those three in the back field, Heyworth at the wheel, and our D1 receiving core, this season should turn out to be very
special! Need not forget our Big Uglies in the trenches, they hold a special part in my heart, those big fellas pave the way for MonroVias success this season. And also our Defense, G5 and Walsh are going to reek havoc on everyone.. Have a great day everyone!

” You Don’t Want No Green And White “

MAN, Let’s Get Real!

Monrovia #1? Not to spoil the party but that’s a division 10 team ranked ahead of teams from the Mission League and Pac 5. St. Paul, St. Francis, and Bishop Amat will destroy those guys. It’s easy beating up on South Pas, Temple City, San Marino, etc…but that’s not BIG BOY football. This is like ranking a dominate NCAA Division II team at the top of Division I top 25 ahead of USC, Alabama, & LSU…MAN, LET’S GET REAL!

WE ARE ST. PAUL!

St. Paul #8 and St. Francis #10? WOW! That’s disrespecting the Mission League. Coach Elijah Asante led St. Paul is going to surprise this year, especially come league and playoff time. Non league schedule includes La Mirada, Mater Dei, La Habra, Bishop Amat, and Servite and league schedule are Harvard Westlake, Chaminade, Cathedral, Serra, and St. Francis. That’s BIG BOY football!

realTALK

Get out of division 10 playing all these non challenging teams!!

Their a great team in that division! They need to move up!!

Agreed with te two previous statements! Play BIG BOY FOOTBALL!

Panther leader

Aram,
DRanch will have a ton of young talent this year, mostly from the Junior class. Look for the Panthers to dominate the Hacienda and walk away with the Southeast Ship these next 2 years. CRL was able to cut alot of the cancerous parents out of the program this year (mostly through graduation and a couple via the transfer out rout) Dont be surprised to see the Ranch atop this poll come seasons end.

8 man football

Playing an actual HIGH SCHOOL 11 MAN FOOTBALL schedule has nothing to do with these rankings. Sure, Monrovia is the BEST of the WORST, but that is all. They would not even be in the game at halftime vs. Amat or CO and they are going to loose to South Hills AGAIN this year.

Monrovia not big boy football? Haha. That’s funny. Do any of those big-boy teams COMBINED have as many next-level kids as Monrovia? Doubt it.

About D-Ranch,

Roddy introduced me to a kid at a basketball game. Ernest Ugoagu is his name I believe. HUGE Islander kid that should be a beast. Going to be a junior this year and looks real legit.

Honest Abe

Aram,

How many “next level kids” does Monrovia have?

8 man football

What do the 2 have to do with each other? Kids transfer to pad their stats and that is all. Look at all of your high profile transfers the past couple years. Athletes moving “down” divisions and “down” leagues to play inferior teams. I am sure that Monrovia has more D1 athletes than De La Sal, does that make them better?

Man, Let’s Get Real!

@Aram, talk is cheap, there is only one way to find out if all those supposed Monrovia D1 talent is legit. Ask them to schedule a non league game against St. Paul, St. Francis, Bishop Amat, Damien, or Upland…

Monrovian

aHahahahahahahaha
I love the smell of Jealousy and envy in the afternoon! It smells so good doesn’t it.. No trash talking this season, Ill just sit back and let our Div.1 talent do it for me!
” You Don’t Want No Green And White “

WE ARE ST. PAUL!

Who does Monrovia play week zero? Let’s have St. Paul play Monrovia while we will ask La Mirada to play who ever Monrovia is suppose to play. Hey, like they say, to be the champ you have to beat the champ. I just want to test your theory about them being able to handle BIG BOY football.

3 peat at monrovia

Haters, Here’s the Run Down of next level talent in the senior class alone!

George Frazier V, D1 Offer

Anthony Craft Jr, D1 Offer

Mason Bryant, D1 Offer(Harvard, just for the thrill)

Brett Walsh- D1 Prospect w/ interest(6’2 215lbs) will get offer.

Blake Heyworth- D1 prospect(6’3 200lbs)

Iassac Mivaret- D1 prospect(6’3 285lbs)

Gevontray Ainsworth – Name recognition alone, Will get the look he needs at Monrovia

That’s Seven Players in the mix, 3 already getting offers… Go down the list at your school before you come on here spreading hate. Let’s start with BA, CO, CH, SH, and any one else. Please include Size and position. No one denies Monrovia’s Division, is not on the same level as those upper division schools. However, based on the performance of all BA and CO anyone can get walk out there and blown out by Upland, and SM. How different would scores be…I sure Monrovia would lose by 40 to Upland and SM and Servite…If you think that Monrovia’s championship team would lose by 70 to those schools your crazy. Not with 7 college prospects on the field. So make your list of all the players that make CO and BA so much better.

8 man football

De La Salle had 6 D1 kids last year and less the year prior and they are the BEST H.S. football team in the state. So once again, the two are not the same thing. All that means is that a bunch of boys who didn’t want to play teams/players who were better than them, transferred to Monrovia so they can pad their stats, that all that means!!! Congrats on your 3rd 8 man football championship.

As a loyal Monrovia fan and alumnus, I don’t like having all the pre-season excitement. It is distracting and can lead to early season disappointment, as it did last year. I can’t argue with Aram’s assessment, though, that we are the most complete team based on what we have coming back, but that does not do anything to smack Ayala in the mouth or respond when they smack us in the mouth and score first. It doesn’t

I do like having a Senior QB who beat league champs Paramount, Whittier Christian, Covina and San Gabriel last year. I like having a big line. I like having several impact players, many whose names are not yet popular. I like the competition for starting positions. Depth is a good thing.

The real challenge is for Coach Maddox and the seniors to figure things out BEFORE the season starts.

I hope every Monrovia coach and player has a burning desire to prove themselves and realize that the three pre-season losses last year left them short of a chance to achieve their ultimate goal of 15-0, however lofty that may have seemed a few years ago. While bloggers like me can write to explain away that blemish, only those boys in pads and coaches with headsets on can actually go out and demonstrate what we Wildcats already know.

Show us how bad you boys really are. Be hungry Practice and play with a purpose and get it done.

MAN, Let’s Get Real!

@3 Peat, just so we’re on the same page, when we use the term “BIG BOY”, it’s not just about passing the eye ball test. It’s about what is in a player’s chest and in his pants if you know what I mean. If they are willing to play some of the more legit teams ranked below them on the top 25 list, I’ll have no trouble giving them props.

I thought like you did, that all the preseason hype led to some early woes. But, then I saw how the team looked with Heyworth settled in at QB and it was very clear the team only struggled because he wasn’t in there.

So now, I think M-Town’s early struggles were strictly because of the QB position. Once Heyworth got in there and started spreading it around that team went to another level.

Look at the entire Valley and you can make the case that Heyworth is the area’s best QB.

New York

Looking at scores from recent seasons, it looks like St Paul would be a competitive team in the Southeast Division. I’m not sure we have consensus that Southeast or Mid-Valley are “Big Boy” divisions, but it is what it is. Both those divisions have “Big Boys” in them, though.

St. Paul is really running their mouths for a team that has been “the other Catholic school” for a very long time. Did Amat put you guys back on the schedule?

No way M-town is #1!!!

How can a team from Div. 10 be the #1 ranked team in the area? What have they proved besides that they can wind their lowly division?
Last year :
….they beat a 3-7 Glendora team. WOW!
….Lost to a 3-7 last place So. Hills team…LOL
….Lost to D. 7 Arcadia
….Lost to D 11 Sn Dimas

Just because a team has TALENT…doesn’t mean they are a TEAM. Every year they have D1. talent. Last year,Damien, Chino Hills and many other schools in the area didn’t have D.1 kids, but they would have whooped up on M-town.

There is no way they could play with Amat, CO, Chino Hills, West Co., Damien…if they are so damn good, why don’t they schedule the “big boys” to get some cred? Why, because they are too busy playing a weak ass schedule, and still getting beat!

Observantcat

Aram has finally gotten real. These kids that we speak of could play and start on any of the teams listed on this page and still be worthy of what they are getting in terms of props. Not only are they gifted atheletes but posses great academic standards far and away better than most atheletes in this game. Yea, the league sucks, the Div. is so so, but the Athletes are for real. These guys are not just good athletes but even greater team players and students. Part 2 of my conversation has a lot to do with the coaching. Monrovia posses some of the best coaching in the area, some of these guys go under the radar but bring more to Monrovia’s success than you can imagine. A guy that doesn’t get nearly the ink or praise is a guy by the name of Donald Davis. Davis is a fixture in the Monrovia Duarte area and a great player in his day as well. Kids look up to and respect him for all he has done to bring some of these kids a dream and help to fulfill it with reality. And of course props must be given to Maddox a guy who stepped into a program full of promise but dismantled at the time sending most of it’s D1 players over to Charter Oaks in 2008, he pulled together what was remaining and still took them to the Semi’s and Three finals within his short helm. So for all of you trying to play the lower div. Card, maybe you should consider the outcome of what these guys are accomplishing rather than trying to say that losing in you div. is worth its weight in gold.

New York

Damien needs to step up its schedule. Does Damien validate a “tough” pre-season by playing one big team in Amat? Damien always tries to associate themselves at the top, but are they really? Prove it.

hater never prosper

It’s easy to come here and trash Monrovia…

Monrovia High School is a small public school, building it’s program. If you look How Charter Oak, and Bishop Amat lost in their big games vs Upland, Servite, and Santa Margarita, how anyone get whipped any worse? Honestly, If you place Monrovia in those games, could they lose any worse in those games?

Each Head to Head Match up is different, then league games, preseason etc… La Habra plays in Div 6, and nearly beat Servite. So Does that mean that b/c Bishop Amat is in Pac 5, would destroy La Habra? NO.

Just stop Hating, No one is claiming that Monrovia would be a top team in Pac5 or inland, Just the top team in SGV right now at this point. As Aram and fred get a better look at what every one has, the will re-rank the teams. But just because you play a tough schedule or In a top Division does not mean you have a better team. Just stop it!

Monrovian

What is this The MTown Haters Ball?
The MonroVia haters gives us a diversary of markass marks,trickass marks,punk bit&%3s,and skip skaps,skanks,and scallywags…hoes,heffers,he ha’s,and hulyhoops. ~ Silky Johnson,Player Haters’ Ball. You guys complaining and crying sound pathetic. Why don’t you guys click your heels together three times, do us a favor and go back to your inferior team or as Silky Johnson Said ” Africa”

” You Don’t Want No Green And White “

Not Hating…Just a Reality

Haters never prosper,
“just because you play a tough schedule or In a top Division does not mean you have a better team. Just stop it!”

Well let’s see…Monrovia plays a CAKE schedule (and still lost to So. hills, D 11 San Dimas, and D. 7 Arcadia) and they play in D.10…..so they do neither.

Monrovia is a very good team (in their division) If they are the # team in the SGV, what does that say about the strength of football played in the SGV when a team from DIVISION 10 is the best team? LOL

SGV FOOTBALL

hater never prosper,

You forgot to add the South Hills Score vs CO. You guys lost and CO spanked SH. WC barley beat SH last year.

The real top 4 in no particular order CO, BA, CH, Damien. The four teams mentioned would beat Monrovia on their worst night.

concussion-symptoms

What does it say about the SGV when the #1 would loose to the #2 thru #8 on any Friday nite? I would put Monrovia no higher than #10 on this list!

M-Town’s Schedule’s a Joke!

Come on Monrovia joke riders….Let’s be real. M-town is small time football. They played 1 team that was in the top 200 in the state!!!! REALLY???
The teams they beat to win their crown were:

And you want to puff your chest out about that? South Hills who finished last in the Sierra League was ranked higher than your playoff opponents…LOL

Keep living in the small time and beating up on the little kids on the playground!

MonroVian

It’s funny how everyone in here bashing MonroVia other than St Paul, is using everything but their team name for a Moniker. Say all you guys want, we are still proud of our boys and it doesn’t change the fact that you aren’t #1 on the list! Stop crying and do some push ups or something.

” You Don’t Want No Green And White “

New York

What does it say…what does it say…blah blah blah.

What does it say about the collective reasoning skills of the haters when they are scrutinizing a pre-season 2012 poll as if it is the final 2011 poll? That is just a rhetorical question. We Monrovians already know the answer. There are 24 other lines on this list for discussion, but envy seems to have everyone focused on #1, a spot filled by a back-to-back CIF champion that has a lot of key personel returning. This is NOT a recap of last season, but rather a projection of the UPCOMING season. I hope you don’t drive your car on the highway by looking through the rearview mirror.

Last year Monrovia had a pre-season reality check. Looking the best in your uniforms does not win ball games. Lesson learned the hard way.

All these supposed Big Boy teams who do next to nothing in their Big Boy divisions need to ask themselves a series of questions:

1. Is the linebacker duo at Big Boy High better than G5-Walsh?

2. Is the QB at Big Boy High better than Heyworth?

3. Are the WRs at Big Boy High better than Craft/Bryant?

4. Is the RB at Big Boy High better than Ainsworth?

5. Is our line at Big Boy High bigger/better than Monrovia’s?

I don’t think there’s ONE team that at THIS POINT can answer YES to ALL those questions. You may answer YES to some, but not all.

I rest my case. Monrovia with a QB running show is the top team in the Valley and surrounding areas RIGHT NOW.

Observantcat

How about some of you fans who think that your team should rank above Monrovia put up some facts about your team instead of trying to find a reason why Aram chose who he thinks has the best prospects already. Lets start there. Thought so…. so used to going down in flames by seasons end it would be an embarrassment to think past this list.

Kennedy Bryant

Well Well welcome to the 2012-13 haters club, promised the wife and kid to be kind this year so ill go easy on the rant. Having said that who cares if you hate M-Town, Aram knows how to insight the blog. Post anything positive about Monrovia or Bishop Amat and all you haters from San Diego to Bakersfield will run that sewer pit better known as a mouth like nobodys business. Win something before you complain about the MHS Wildcats This is the champions blog.
It’s ok to hate winners because losers always do. So many of you guys remind me of the Billionaire rich guy with all the money in the world but complains about the Millionaire not having as much he does. The problem is the millionaire is winning championships and the billionaire still complaining us not being as rich as he is. (Billionaires Div 1-9) (Millionaire Div 10-11) So all you trying to diss little ole Monrovia for playing in div 10 or div whatever, picture M-town counting its millions winning championship and Ill appreciate you counting your billions in the loser club. It doesnt really matter were both rich. Problem for you is your BROKE on Championships and M-Town is stacking Championships like $100.00 bills. So all you Big Dogs can keep fighting in the heavy weight division getting your clock cleaned and well take the flyweight to cruiserweight division. Better to be Sugar Ray Leonard or Manny Paqiuo then the likes of loser like Jerry Quarry, Sadle Sadler, Jack Stenson or Ike Rudder. Youre probably saying who are they never heard of them. Well those guys are the same clowns that fight in the heavyweight division and brag about fighting in the heavyweight division but never win. Just like you

AMAT 73

Why all the hate towards Monrovia because of their number one ranking. It is Aram’s choice and he likes them in the number one slot. Nowhere does it say you must play D-4 or above to qualify nor does it say you must play top ranked teams in preseason either. Do they have talent , hell yes , can any of those players make another schools roster and probably start, hell yes . Can they beat a upper tier team , who knows ???? That is the problem to many bloggers in the fact that there really isn’t a big game victory against upper tier teams . I guess to Aram it’s not a big deal and leaving it up to the could , would , and should , is ok for a preseason poll . St Francis will be a test to see how good this team is or can be . The way I see it is if they do not win the Mid Valley then the season is a total loss because with all that talent , they should walk away with the title barring any serious injuries to key players. Question for the Monrovia fans, in order to make a run at a state title berth is an undefeated season with huge margin wins over the competion a must to get into the game or what will it take seeing as you need to pass upper divison teams with tougher schedules .

Boogey man clears up skewed and biased opinions

As long as Aram ranks BA or CO #1 no one has any issues, as soon as it’s West Covina or Monrovia, people come here crying and complaining.

Mtown understands that the inland, pac 5, southeast are tougher Divisions than the Midvalley. However, Charter Oak and Bishop Amat’s performance in those Divisions in the past 3 years, have been sub par. Monrovia could and did smoke every team in the midvalley. The Scores were crazy, just like West Covina did in the southeast. All the starters were pulled 3rd qtr and the JV’s were ripping it up. Bishop Amat and Charter Oak would have score 50+ to 70+, Maybe 100+ points against Midvalley teams. Opponents. On the flip side, If Monrovia played Servite, or Upland or SM, they couldn’t have play any worse, wait weren’t those scores to 40-30pt loses. So you are saying that Monrovia would lose 70-0 lol. How Bad do have to beat opponents in your Division, and how bad do you have to lose to opponents in your division to get or lose respect. These rankings are just Icing on the cake. For the Tribune to take a Div 11 team and Rank them #1 says a lot about that program, and it’s “progress”. That’s a very important word. We all know Monrovia is getting better as time goes on…is your school getting better or worse…Umm Haters announce your school and state whether they are getting better or worse and why…Haters…we all heard every reason why Monrovia shouldn’t be #1, then Why should Bishop or CO be # 1? Monrovia Could schedule Servite, De La Salle, and Don Bosco Prep, and lose by 40+ points, and just because they played those teams and lost, that validates their position and Ranking? That’s what everyone on here is saying. I agree with Amat 73, He is right a 15-0 record, with large margin victories, is the only mark that would hold Monrovia in the #1 spot the entire year. We are fine with that. If Monrovia blows out St Francis and Ayala by 3 scores or more, that would be a huge statement. Monrovia has elevated their level to permanent top 5 status, Just as BA, CO, CH, and WC. Since they are at that level, They should be eligible for the #1 spot. BA, CO are in this position because of their Division,(Which is deserving) and schedule, not because they beat anyone significant outside of the SGV. So I guess Maddox should schedule, the Top 5 teams in CIF, lose by 40+, then they will be validated as the area’s #1 team…

Not really feeling it

I’m alot more surprised about teams like South Hills, Glendora, and Ayala not even making the bottom half of this poll then I am about Monrovia being at #1. There’s no way you could ever convince me that teams like Duarte, Arroyo, Azusa, San Gabriel, Cantwell, and Maranantha could ever win just 1 game in the Sierra or Baseline. Heck, if these teams came within even 2 touchdowns of the last place team in Sierra or Baseline I would have to double check the score from a second source. Is this one of those “In your own world” polls, or is this a poll of “Who can beat who”?

Fyi – The top ten seems reasonable.

Frank

Being ranked #1 always brings out the haters. Just ask Bishop Amat. In all honesty I dont think Monrovia is the best team, but on paper they look good. Monrovia’s problem is that they are not battle tested against any good teams. I said it last year since I am familiar with this program, they are a team that looks good from the outside, but when they play any team who is a divsion above them they fold. I said this last year before they played Arcadia and SH.
I think they will do well again and win another ring. What Monrovia needs to do to get some credibility is schedule some better preseason teams. But no matter who you play people will talk smack when your ranked #1.

Gaps to fill

After losing Bueno Monrovia had a Huge gap to fill. All they did was win a CIF title. This season everyone is back with Additions
Result: 1st place in league, CIF title In “D11”

West Co – Has huge gaps to fill with Soloman, and Star DE graduating, However they reloaded nicely with LB Transfer, and Hornsby. RB’s grow on trees over there. However, Hull brings a lot to the table.
Result: 1st place in league, Deep Southeast run.

CO-Has a huge gap to fill with Scoby and Santiago gone, and were cannon fotter in the Inland with those guys. They did pick up stud OL(Great pick up). What’s going to happen this year with out those guys?
Result:???? It does not look good for them in Big Boy “D2”. 2nd/3rd place in league, First round exit for sure!!!

BA-Has huge gaps to fill losing Ruiz, Moore and jr stud OL(ouchhhhh you need your big uglies). Blue should be good, Haynes should be good. However, there is no chance they do anything in their Division.
Result: May miss playoffs, if not, 3rd place in league 1st round cleansing down in the OC.

Chino Hills-True inland team, no matter who they have they seem to match up well against any inland powers. Their Line core is outstanding every year. Tons of students…
Result: 2nd place in league, good showing in Inland playoffs.

Damien-Has talent skill players coming back, Can the line get it done? This could be Damien’s year to win league and Beat BA.
Result: 1st place league, 2nd round exit in inland

Rio hondo League …please.
Aram, have u ever played on Friday under the lights….

because if u have….u would know that heart and determination in a team will win over a team w/ 2 or 3 D1 pros. every time.

Dan

Always appreciate the discussions on these football Top 25 polls, like JCaz I read these boards almost every day even though I haven’t posted much.
Preseason polls are just for the fun of discussion so I’m ok with Monrovia at #1. These past couple of seasons they definately seemed to have the skill position talent to match up with BA, CO, or WC. Team chemistry, physicalness and line play is where they seemed to come up short, but with a team that is mostly senior led and a line led by Minaveret,that can match up size wise with any team in the east sgv, plus the linebacking duo of Frazier and Walsh could this be the turning out year where this team starts their ascent into a powerhouse status?
Sure they are in D10, but lets not forget there was a time when Orange Lutheran and St. Bonaventure were in D11. The difference was those schools were playing and beating some big boy schools like Mater Dei and Hart when they started making their move up in divisions. I would think at minimum, Monrovia needs to go 14 and 0 and decisively win their step up games against St. Francis(if they play this year),and South Hills, and Arcadia, to keep their #1 spot over teams like Amat, CO, and WC. That is if Amat, CO and WC have good seasons to begin with.

Coach Slayer

It is surprising to me how little you clones know what is happening in SGV football. That includes Aram lovers, Amat, CO, and Monrovia groupies. All you cheerleaders do is show your booties but never come with it. If you knew, DB, Arroyo and Bonita have the goods this year but nobody does the homework.

Observantcat

Dan, good observation, but Physicalness, and line play were the biggest gains for Monrovia in the past few years. This year should be probably one of the most physical of them all. More like team organization in the off season is where I believe Monrovia has come up short over the past few years. This year I hope and believe that all of those short comings will not be prevalent and the Wildcats can ride full stride from the pre-season to the Post season without too many glitches or injuries. Speaking of the other teams on this list, I’m sure that if any of them were sitting at that number one spot someone somewhere would have something to say about that, but when you have as many players who have proven themselves to be winners not whiners it’s hard to knock them off that thrown.

SGV Football

I love it. The bashing and opinions begin. Remember the saying, ” Opinions are like Aholes “, everyone has one. This preseason poll is just that….The Preseason opinion of Aram. He needs to keep as many cities happy, and we all know he is usually clueless about reality. Anyone who begins to mix D11 teams with D1, D2, or even D3 teams is just that, Clueless. But this is all in fun, so enjoy it. Support your teams, and enjoy your kids while they are this age. Everything pans out in the end when the teams show what they really have on the field. And reality is that there really are tiers D1-D2-D3 could compete, but all other lower divisions don’t have a chance. But this again, this is just another opinion.

Observantcat

When those D10 have better athletes and are all around better teams, your feelings do get hurt. Colleges would just laugh at your comment especially when it comes down to the talent aspect. If this poll were to be about who has the most D1 talent potential, Monrovia would still be on top. So for all the smoke screening about d1, d10 etc…. it means absolutely nothing, just ask SC, UCLA, All of the PAC 12 schools, I believe that Monrovia is certainly on their radar. And as far as academic University’s be aware that Stanford, Princeton, Harvard, Yale, etc… have their eyes open as well. So if that’s not enough for a small school sitting on the edge of the foothills then what is?

Basic Smarts

It shouldn’t take a rocket scientist to know that you don’t compare teams from D5 through D11 to the D1 through D4 division teams. The reality is that it is just not fair. I do believe Monrovia has very good players, and they will definately compete for their third CIF. But to compare them to CO, WC, BA, and a few others on the list is not real. We saw what happened last year when they played the worst teams from the upper divisions-they lost. So what makes Aram think that this Monrovia tem could compete this year? All this is, is Aram’s clouded opinion. So have a laugh, and just enjoy this crap. When Monrovia plays any team worth mentioning, and wins, then we can give them some props. Until then, this is the furthest they will get in the SGV-The preseason poll.

Kennedy Bryant

Love that high school in the Valley…. Love that Green and White. Props to the West Covina Bulldogs yeah thats right the returning CIF Champs…. Everyone else is in the LOSERS BRACKET.

WIN SOMETHING and stop worrying about who we play. GO beat somebody, anybody get some victories on Friday night then come back to the blog and brag. All you haters get more joy out of bad mouthing everyone elses success because your forgotten what it feels like to be successful. I dont know if Monrovia could be Bishop or WC or San Marino for that matter who cares I dont really care about the what if’s of life. But I know the only two CHAMPIONS are MHS and WCHS everyone else was paying admission to see champions play. So relish in the fact that youre playing better teams you have to rationalize your ALSO RAN STATUS and SUCKYNESS somehow LOSERs.

As I have said many times better to be champs than chumps. Winning is winning and Losing; well keeps you complaining about the winners.

Running our mouths?????

@ new york: FYI, yes St Paul is on Amat’s schedule this year in week 4….

I would say by far one of the toughest schedule hands down, this new coach is up for the challenge…. Say what you will, but this coach will put St Paul back on the map!!!!! Maybe not this year but mark my words once these growing pains works it self out…..

To the St. Paul fan, I give your new coach serious credit for taking the bull by the horns. I think you guys will probably go 3-7 this coming season, but damn, that is one serious schedule. I can’t wait til we play you at home this coming season. I think that will be a very good game. As for Monrovia, listen, enough hating. I think Monrovia has earned to be this high in the polls. I say congrats to Monrovia, WC, and any other team having success. When we SGV teams actually do get a chance to play oneanother, things get very interesting, and then we will have real proof as to who is better. This coming season we play CO, Chino Hills, and St. Paul. I love this. No matter who wins, the anticipation is awesome. So good luck to all the SGV teams, I can’t wait for the coming season.

SGV FOOTBALL

SGV Football,

Lets be creative and get your own moniker.

Ceee-Ohhh!!!

Joe Amat

Kennedy,

I’d be careful when you say beat “somebody”, because there are those who have differring definitions of who “somebody” might be. The last four years the “somebodies” who have fallen to the Lancers are programs like Orange Lutheran, Mater Dei, St Bonaventure, St Paul, St Francis, Chaminade, West Covina, Dominguez, Venice, Diamond Ranch, Damien, Alemany, Crespi, Loyola, and Notre Dame. Amat has also fallen to a few of tnose “sombosies” during that time, along with “somebodies” like Servite, or playoff losses to teams like Long Beach Poly (#1 in Nation), Lakewood, Tesoro, and Santa Margarita (State Champions) – but no Arcadias, South Hills, San Dimases, or Rosemeads in the bunch.

I think what some people are saying is its time for Monrovia to beat a “somebody” similiar to ANY of those schools before they start claiming any superiority over anything but the “sombodies” in the MidValley.

Can you name ANY?

Undertaker

Running Mouth – He will either put them on the map or WIPE THEM OFF!!!!

That’s a serious schedule….even IF they make it through in several pieces (because they don’t come out unscathed) will they have enough pieces to play next year? Forget playoffs, they won’t be able to field a team after that meat grinder!!!

Joe Amat

(crashing back into the blog like John Madden)
“And another thing…”

I disagree that “winning is winning and losing is losing”

I’ve experienced plenty of “wins” where I felt like we lost and plenty of losses where I feel like we won.

If you have never felt that way…maybe you’re playing the wrong schedule.

Kennedy Bryant

@ Joe Amat:
We for the most part disagree on just about everything so Im not too sure that your definitions of winning and losing are relevant, well at least to me. As I have said to all you ALSO RANS at the once high and mighty Bishop Amat, your high school football program is irrelevant to me and too many others I might add. Hey I respect your passion for your alma mater, but buddy your program is just like CARSON AND BANNING, once great and now on life support. I say this as a former slayer of the once almighty LANCERS. So if you want to talk about winning and losing let talks about what your team did against my team. YOUR TEAM LOST, Beat you at your house 28-21 when you were number 1 in the BIG 5 Conference aka DIV1. Ok so lets not talk about if they played or you hold a 2-1 over Monrovia lifetime I dont care, because that Friday night I played we went home winners. Let me repeat I dont care but you had to drag me into personal stuff. Furthermore, as a result of the CIF ruling on transfers AMAT is going be more irrelevant this season, face it JOE AMAT, AMAT football has been given its LAST RIGHTS so can come on the blog and continue to administer CPR but the patient aka Bishop Amat doesnt look like its going to make. Ill keep praying for you guys though as its the right thing to do and you are in need of Divine intervention.
Let me be clear I dont have anything against BA I have family that played there and unlike a lot of haters in here I respect what BA once were but its clear to me what they are NOW. So gimme those light weight titles all day and you keep getting molested in the heavy weight division.

That’s OK, Kennedy. Joe Amat and I rarely see eye to eye on anything either. But I respect his contributions to the blogs, like yours, as they’re always well thought out.

Just reading your post, though, got me thinking that relief may be coming Amat’s way in two years if the Lancers don’t have some playoff success and quick. If that happens, these blogs will erupt with Amat haters laughing their cakes off.

I hope it NEVER happens. I hope Amat always remains D-1/PAC-5 because anything less would be a major blow to our Valley and something Daddy isn’t ready to cope with.

Kennedy Bryant

When and if Amat returns to greatness ill be the first to talk about what Amat did against Monrovia because those facts will never change. But I will not hate on their rise back to greatness ill be glad for them. That is the problem with most of the folks on the blog they want to hate who ever is on top and thats not my style. But it is my style to defend the BACK2BACK CIF welterweight Champions.

Joe Amat

Kennedy,

Those were not wins I listed from any distant past (although I noticed you took a rather “Bundy-esque” trip down. Memory Lane yourself – so who’s living in the past?). Those were wins in the last four years. I simply asked that you name just one win that matches any of those. Just one.

Now if you want to talk playoffs, we’ve got work to do in our division, and I’ve never claimed anything but. however, I have a question for you. Do you view Monrovias “rise to the top” a result of the coaching change, better players…or the fact that you no longer have to go through teams from the Pioneer, Los Padres, Camino Real, or old Del Rey Leagues on your way to your title?

And be honest with yourself.

Observantcat

I think the bottom line Joe, is that BA is not even close to the BA from back in the day. Things have gotten pretty bare over in La Puente when it comes to having gifted type atheletes wanting to compete and play for the school. Right now when people think football BA doesn’t render into the brain. In this so called fish bowl more people look at who’s winning not who they think should win. If Bishop picked up Scoby and maybe a few more gifted athletes then I too would follow you and your passion for football, but for what I see now Luck not talent may be the biggest factor in achieving greatness over at Amat. Thats no put down just pure fact.

AMAT 73

Aram,
As I pointed out in an earlier post , this is your list of who you think is the preseason number one team . It seems there are many bloggers who do not agree with your choices from top to bottom. I for one and I have many times voiced my opinion on SHHS being ranked so high by both you and Fred on these list but for you to exclude them from the top 25 teams and a few teams rated above them ( Duarte for one and probably because of Scoby ) is very puzzling. Maybe just for kicks open up a bloggers poll on what we think the top 25 are and take the data and have a consensus bloggers top 25 . Might be fun to see what the bloggers think compared to you .

Observantcat

As you would say Mr. Amat, (crashing back into the blog like John Madden)
“And another thing…” You like to use the term Apples and Oranges, well if I recall your 2010 season which in fact was you best season in 15 years, you played John Muir and beat them by a score of 34-14 and Arcadia played them a few weeks later and beat them 34-13, while that same Arcadia team lost to I guess an Orange (Monrovia)
team 34-7 and that was in your best season. Afraid you may want to rethink your teams assessment before stretching the truth past the 605. I appreciate you knowledge of the game but your uncanny ability to always figure an outcome in Amats favor gets old.

Joe Amat

Aram,

I didn’t see your post when I responded to Kennedy. But in light of what you wrote, I suppose you agree that the Wildcats rise is a result of “relief” and maybe these blogs should erupt with Monrovia haters “laughing their cakes off”?

Any observant cat can see that it can’t be “pretty bare over in La Puente” to pull off the wins that I listed in the last four years (who no one from Monrovia or this paper has stepped up to try to match). Amat may not have the Mr America specimens and combine phenoms that impress Aram so much…but that only makes those wins and the “Twenty-Something and One” record vs SGV schools during this past “declining decade” that much more impressive. Football is a team game and Amat has faced plenty of schools thoughout their history where the Lancers have lost the look-test and pre-game warmups…only to see a different result at the end.

If Amat’s cupboard is bare – what exactly does that say for those schools that we a victim of those Twenty-Something losses?

Observantcat

That means their cupboards weren’t as full as they thought either. You can not place a value on something that cant be proven. But in retrospect, I doe believe that we might have been just as competitive in most if not all of the games you were competitive in. It’s not about a looks test, its about competition. I know for fact that the kids on the Monrovia squad will compete with any team that is put in front of them, most of these kids have been on winning teams since the third and fourth grades. They dont choose who they play or what teams they must face to win championship games, but the fact is they get their and compete. Whether its it;s teams in the Los Padre, league, Camino real league or what ever league, it’s just High school football. So I just toss that theory of apple and oranges right out the back of the BA mini Van… I truly doesn’t matter. I’m not going to be biased and believe that other teams in the area dont feel the same because in this Era of football Anyone can step up and compete with anyone in the SGV.

Joe Amat

Observant one,

I personally would say our 2009 team that went 10-2 and beat Dominguez, Damien, Diamond Ranch, St Bonaventure, West Covina, St Paul, Alemany, Loyola, Notre Dame and Mater Dei was better than our 2010 team that only beat Garfield, Domingues, Damien, Venice, Cathedral, Crespi, Loyola, and Notre Dame, in addition to Muir.

If you would get out and watch the Lancers you’d know that “piling on” is not Hagerty’s style. While many teams like to win going away (some against us) you’ll see many Amat games whe the score is 34-6 at the end of the 3rd quarter and Amat is more than content to clear the bench and run out the clock – to the extent that Amat took a knee FOUR times inside the 10 in the final minute and a half to avoid a score vs Diamond Ranch.

..and you’re still gonna hang your hat on a win over Arcadia?

from the Valley

At Monrovia’s fans, It’s great to be proud of the your team. 3 in a row is quite the accomplishment. But don’t you think its time to upgrade the pre-season? Last season the highest rated team the Monrovia played was Arcadia which finished the season at 168 (maxpreps). I cant find the 2012 season schedule, but i read somewhere they may have St Francis this year. Thats a step in the right direction, another one or two upgrades would help solidify your lofty goals and prove your rating is for real. Your push in the finals were against S.Pasadena(570), Whittier Chrisitian(424), Covina(231)and the finals SG (357). Come on guys at least upgrade your pre-season if you want bragging rights for the whole valley.

Joe Amat

O-cat,

Maybe you want to believe it means their cupboard wasn’t as full as they thought – but the reality is Dominguez was a D4 semifinlist, Damien lost to 13-1 Charter Oak 23-20 on a late Fg, Diamond Ranch was in the finals vs CO, St Bonaventure went 14-2 and lost to Westlake in the finals after demonlishing LB Poly before they played Amat, Alemany was a D3 finalist, Loyola beat the D3 champs, and Mater Dei beat Corona Centennial that year…so those teams were plenty full.

Arcadia?

Freedom!!!!!

Can we all quit with the who beat who by how much. In the past BA has been as Talented or More talented than 99% of the surrounding schools, with the exception of the back to back Charter oak team loaded with Monrovia and Pasadena players. This year, the CO, BA game will be good for bragging rights, however neither program is at it’s best right now. Majority of the bloggers Say Bishop Will beat everyone, Unless a head to head game is play we really don’t know. Servite blew out bishop, La Habra barely loss, but I still think Bishop would beat la Habra. Schools like Monrovia “this” year has one of the special teams that could take down the lancers. If CO had Scoby, they just might have beaten the lancers. Chino hills just might. I don’t care if BA beats De La Salle the week before…they can lose this week or next week or any week. If BA played Monrovia, they would not be taking them lightly, It would not be a blow out especially when Monrovia has the Better QB, and better Defensive talent. The only advantage BA has is that they are use to playing teams like Monrovia, or better. Monrovia, rarely plays a team of that status.

Kennedy Bryant

@ Joe Amat:
Hmm to be honest, Im not sure as to why MHS is where they are right now, so I cannot answer that question. However, Coach Maddox, Coach Davis and the rest of the MHS coaching staff have done a STELLAR job in developing a program the is teaching lifelong lessons. Monrovia is what is has always been, diverse with great community support, stellar student athletes and a passionate fan base.
Being honest requires me to tell the truth so I confess that we old farts always think that we were better and everything is watered down now and these kids today would get embarrassed if they play our old teams. Its just too hard to know and its too subjective. We had faster players but they have better coaching. I can say all I want about how great we were but my son just puts his two rings in my face. Its a fare question I just dont know the answer

Kennedy Bryant

@ Freemdom

Amen and I couldnt have said it any better myself.

Freedom!!!!!

@ Kennedy Wink Wink…See you real soon lol.

Kennedy Bryant

Scheduling isnt as easy as you might think, contracts, 2 year home and home agreements, one year deals often time get rejected. It isnt as simple as making a call to Bihop or CO St Bonnies and say hey lets play this season. Thats all wishful thinking. Just ask Fresno St.

concussion-symptoms

Ya, because everyone is scared to play Monrovia right! Please don’t compare Monrovia to Fresno St.! Pick up the phone and call CC or Upland or Rancho or CO or CHills or Norco or Etiwanda or REV or Redlands or ANY other H.S. on the East side of the 57 fwy. I am sure someone has an opening or will make sure they make one for next season.

Freedom!!!!!

The best teams always play bishop a year or two after later when they are not as good. You can’t blame Bishop For their consistency. There teams are always solid if not great, but what is being said here is that Monrovia, WC, CO, Chino Hills, have really got to point where their programs are good every year now. So soon Bishop will have to play these teams, if they keep winning. People will begin to ask why they don’t play them every year. I know Bishop is not running, but no more garfield’s or la mirada’s or Venice’s….Get at least two locals a year like you did this year.

Anonymous

its just hilarious how Bishop Amat is still in the top 3. After losing their everything in Qb and Rb 9 and moore but that just goes to show that even sprotwriters or whatever you wanna call yourselves let their feeling get tangled up in their writing or whatever you wanna call it.

Answers???

I understand that the names below may be the kids bloggers, and I mean no disrespect. I am not saying these guys can’t play. However, these are the Jr lineman from last years team. Now If the BA program has some big hogs coming up from Frosh/Soph team this may look better. However, this has to be one of the smallest Returning O line’s in the Valley and the Pac 5. It’s may be a long year for Mr. Blue. I know he is fast, and has moves, but there is absolutely no size over there right now. Well BA Fans, are there some guys Maxpreps missed?

1. Bishop Amat — Defense may not have size, but it has plenty of experience. Great Program, Deserves Pre-Season#1
2. La Habra — If you thought last year was a reload, wait until you see this year. Lost top Corner to SP.
3. St. Paul — New regime has been reportedly working hard to get talent infusion. That’s the understatement of the year…lol
4. St. Francis — QB returns, but there’s tons of question marks elsewhere. HUGE O-LINE
5. La Mirada — Leading passer, rusher and receiver all back. They Got Some Football Players!
6. West Covina — How to use Noodles, and where, the big question this spring. Chicken Noodle Soup.
7. Charter Oak — Loss of leading passer/rusher will be very hard to overcome. Never Under Estimate Big Lou!
8. Monrovia — The most complete team around. Period. Sombody slipped Aram a RUFFIE!
9. Damien — Waiting to see what’s up this summer, but this could be No. 1 by fall. ARAM, This is your brain on drugs…lol
10. Chino Hills — High-upside team has talent, but lacks experience. Scary. We aint never scared!
11. La Serna — QB Palmer is one of the best dual-threats around. REALLY?
12. Pasadena — Insiders tell me how great things are, then later admit it’s a one-man show. Yeah, but that one man show is a franchise QB.
13. Arcadia — Down compared to last year, but still solid enough to bang with most. Most of who?
14. San Dimas — Consistency, not talent, is program’s greatest attribute. OK!
15. Maranatha — Division switch should put Minutemen in thick of title chase. Jr Midgets.
16. Muir — Loss of Talifero stings, but decent talent remains for new head coach. NOT REALLY!
17. Cantwell — Skill talent is there to do damage in the Northwest. Is that in Oregon?
18. Arroyo — Can rely on ground game and defense until new QB is settled in. BORING!
19.Duarte — By far the best transfer wont be playing for Duarte.
20. San Gabriel — Hearing some very interesting things about SG. A team to watch! I watched them horrible!
21. Bonita — Bonita Applebaum you gotta put me on…
22. Diamond Ranch — Really need to see what Roddy’s working with this spring. Ranch Dressing!
23. Azusa — Aztecs had to cringe at Duarte’s upgrades. They are who we think they are!
24. Claremont — ‘Pack have decent skills, but need a toughness upgrade badly. Are they 8 man?
25. Diamond Bar — Some of the best talent around in spots, but toughness? Soft!

The MAN

We are ST.Paul,

I heard that SP new coach is bringing in new talent and size this yr, DL 6’3 280 TE 6’3 220 …

Sp known for their toughness and tenacity, i hope they don’t lose that.

Did you see BA pee wee line returning lol….You are crazy…CO beats BA, Mtown beats st francis…West Co beats la mirada in the 1st round….St Paul could be up there.

1. Monrovia-Cats have 5 College guys, Best QB…St Francis, Ayala, and SD stand in the way of 15-0
2. West Covina-Is the deepest in the trenches
3. Damien- This is their year to win league
4. CO – 2nd best SGV Program, must find a way to win in playoffs
5. Bishop Amat- Storied, #1 program in SGV history, going to be a long year
6. Chino Hills – Plays Rancho better than CO true inland team
7. La Habra – several titles, can beat Anyone in SGV
8. St Paul – Hype!!! 5-0 to 3-2 come league Could be #1 in area
9. St Francis – Solid Solid Program. Can not afford to lose to Monrovia
10.Diamond Bar – Hollywood!!! They have talent…have to beat the bulldogs at some point.

Question of the year….Is SNOOP D-O double G going to hit the blog this season!!!! Aram is going to be star struck .
Live with it-

WE ARE ST. PAUL!

@The Man, we will play ANYBODY, ANYTIME, ANYWHERE. A sample of our 2012 starting line, by no means a finished product:

Monrovia could go 15-0 and win the Reebok bowl like Amat did in ’92 and we would still have people detracting from our success rather than cheering on their own teams.

Amat73 has shown to be a true Amat fan, someone accustom to winning and showing his been there and done that attitude and praising others for their success. I’m a bit surprised at Joe’s tone in this argument, but he must be having fun…although Joe is bordering on becoming a disgruntled St. Paul fan…dont do it, Joe.

To be quite honest, Monrovia needs to run the table this pre-season to prove that they are better than the ’97-98 teams. Those teams, Joe, were great against the Los Padres League, Ocean League, whatever league…we just CHOAKED in the finals. In 1998 we blew out Santa Ynez by 50+ points in the semis. Santa Ynez had beaten Paso Robles a few weeks earlier. Keep in mind our ’98 team handed D2 Diamond Bar their only loss in two seasons. The ’97 team lost 28-14 to Mira Costa after blowing out Mira Costa’s league foes in the playoffs. We had a JR QB who threw SIX picks, one for an opening play touchdown pick-six, but the score was still that close. So no, league realignment is not the reason for our success. So the reality is that we have always had the players to win the divisions we were win, we just lacked the preparation. The preparation, game planning, and methodical game management is what Coach Maddox has brought to Monrovia.

The next step is to regularly schedule strong teams in the pre-season. This year is a good start, BUT it is not there yet. Hey, every team on our schedule can surely beat us. That’s not my point. I would like to see a pre-season schedule that requires every ounce of our energy on a weekly basis, kinda like most of Amat’s season requires of them.

Glendora won the Sierra League 3-4 years in a row, right? Last year Monrovia, West Covina and Charter Oak all had similar results against Glendora. Last year WestCo beat South Hills and Monrovia lost to South Hills right around the same time, but the scores were very close. A few weeks later Charter Oak BLEW OUT South Hills, but then South Hills had some close losses thereafter.

That tells me: 1) There was initial parity among CO, WC, Monrovia, AND South Hills but South Hills fell apart against CO, or 2) CO really separated from the pack mid-season last year and showed it by dominating the Sierra League. ANYWAY, that is 2011 and not what this discussion is about.

West Coast All Day!

NEW YORK SUCKS!!!

New York

Those St. Paul fans seem to be active tonight…or maybe they restored internet priviledges at the detention center. Either way, the side fodder seems to be part of the new blog reality, sadly.

West Coast All Day!

@New York, don’t be mad because you couldn’t make St. Paul’s freshmen team back in the days so you transferred to Monrovia just so you can put on a uniform and tell everyone you play football.

@ Wet Shorts all day,
NY would of started over anyone of you’re OL at you’re dried up, over it’s head, disheveled St. Paul! Not only him but the whole line would of started over anyone of your O lineman. Seriouse beef back in the day at Monrovia. Below is a link to a pic to prove it. You sound like a huge idiot West Coast!

Funny…I guess there is no limit to what one can find on the Internet. Fun times.

Man, I had never even heard of St. Paul until my sophomore season. One of my teamates who had transferred from Bell Gardens told me how cool St. Paul looked because they all had shaved heads and had some kind of ritual of lining up in a straight line and doing a back-flop following a loss to Bishop Amat. Does St. Paul still do a single-line back-flop every time they lose? I hope you have a good Judo instructor on campus.

St. Paul seems to have an identity crisis. They want respect so badly, and want to pound their chest and claim “Big Boy” status. They should be one, as a parochial school…They probably even have a Bob’s Big Boy statue holding a hamburger platter in front of the football field. BUT, just like Damien, they know not to pound their chests too hard or to look toward La Puente…but they just can’t help themselves sometimes.

As I mentioned earlier, past seasons suggest that St. Paul would do pretty well in the Southeast Division, but these bloggers would have you believe they were playing in the Pac-5 like Amat and Bosco.

St. Paul undoubtedly has put together a fierce schedule. BUT going 3-7 or 4-6 will only create more debate related to your “quality” losses. The word around Monrovia last year was that Monrovia and St. Paul were exploring a pre-season game. Obviously that did not happen, but it sounded interesting.

AMAT 73

New York,
Thanks for the comp . Sometimes it’s just better to let this age old battle be fought by others until we can see it on the field and leave no doubt on the answer as AMAT will see this season with a couple of SGV foes .And as I had posted a while back , no matter when you play a team you go with what you brung. None of this, well back with our 1980 or 2007 team would have smacked you up side the head but you caught us when we just graduated 5 or 6 D-1 players and are rebuilding. You put on the line everytime you play if you want to talk smack , no excuses .Your Cats are now in the disscussion as a top team so now it’s time to schedule up and knock some of those teams off. St Francis is a great start and get back those early losses from last season if you face those teams again.As you can see an undefeated season is what most are expecting out of Monrovia now and if you 3peat , next beef with bloggers will be for Monrovia to be moved up . As for the slime boys coming on here talking all that bull( pun intended ) well it’s finally happened. All that cow dung and contaminated land has finally got the best of them. New coach , maybe a few transfers but guess what , the same old slime . Glad to have them back on the schedule and I can’t wait to see those back flips again .

St Paul is coo, but if Monrovia beats St Francis and you don’t oooohh…you swordsmen are going to be on hush…then you coach is going to look all mad in his easter suit.

From the Hood to Private schools

St Paul is coo, but if Monrovia beats St Francis and you don’t oooohh…you swordsmen are going to be on hush…then you coach is going to look all mad in his easter suit.

You Guys No Clue

St. Paul will rise under Asante and Damien is improved (not a power) and Salesian is doing a great job recentely. Watch the D1 athletes that come out of these school this year. Take a look at Scout if you don’t belive me.
All this is just BAD news for Amat. Many of the athletes that will help the programs mentioned above use to go to Amat but not right now.
I’m not ragging on Amat but the truth is the truth.
Coach Hagerity who spends a lot of time discouraging and at times threating his players not to go to training outside of his facility just doen’t get it.
Coach Asante on the other hand is at every big camp and also hosts his own. He even has seminars for parents on how to get your kid into college. He is by far the smartest working coach in the valley and St. Paul will be much improved because of it because the players will come.
Asante’s only challenge will be the parents of average kids who are going to be left behind. If the administration understand who they hired and support him it will be a slam dunk St. Paul in only a season away from being number one.

IQ

Well, coach Assante’s goal, is to turn st paul into a pac 5 team by playing and beating pack 5 teams. I think his issue won’t be the parents of average kids, it will be making sure the character of the kids that come over in his first two years. They have to stay eligible, have good behavior and sportsmanship. A private catholic school is a different that a public city school. You can not have a bunch of top notch athletes slash bad students walking around. At public schools they kind of have to keep the kids, and private they don’t. They relationship would be over fast. However, if he get through these first few years, with no issues, he can recruit and pick and choose the young men he wants. He can mold them for 4 years. He is a good spot, and being div 4 he could be in pac 5 in no time.

I would not go so fast as to say he is the smartest coach. There are some good coaches in the valley like Maddox, Miggioire , Jude Oliva etc…they just work at public schools where you can’t turn things around in two years like at a private school. You have budget, transportation issues, ETc… That is why Assante left Carson. Bishop Should have went after this dude…I think their coach is not that good. Any way he will be one of the best and should win right away…St Paul could have the biggest come up or Biggest let down. He will have to prove himself. It may not be as easy as everyone thinks, he himself has to adjust to this atmosphere and level of expectation. He did a wonderful job at Carson, this ain’t Kansas no More. Private schools want you to do what you said you would do…go ask BA athletic director…won’t be too much losing going on.

Roger Mahornee

Only thing to “Come Out” of Private Catholic schools in the last 10 years are priests!
That’s right…!

concussion-symptoms

@ Roger Mahornee…

That is funny stuff!!!

transfer watcher

Amat player transfered to one of Arams top 5 teams on his list.

yeah right

Transfer watch…drop a name…ur not a school official, coach, writer or Parent of the transferring kid are you ? We think you are just trying to be funny

What?

Wow St Paul has a tough schedule this year. This what seperates the boys from the men especially when it comes to playoff time. Can’t wait to go to BA vs St Paul.

Good on paper, but you need a new game plan.

St Paul schedule looks good. However, when you play those kinds of games, it could wear you down. Killing yourself in preseason means nothing. Now let’s say St Paul wins their division, they will never go to state because they will never be undefeated. There are plenty of great teams out there without playing pac 5 only. Coach Assante wont make to state ever..NO way st paul goes 5-0 in preseason as long as he is there. Carson was never in consideration bc their preseason schedule was too tough. Slow down there cowboy!!! Play BA and Mater Dei, then play 1-2 top inland teams, and maybe one San Diego section power…This way you have quality wins and have the chance to go to state.

BraveDad

Again, the comedy relief from the St. Paul faithful has served its purpose. I’m laughing so hard my side aches. St. Paul has a plethora of problems and hiring a new coach and scheduling a few football games against D1-PAC5 programs will not fix the problems. The type of families who sent their kids to SP 25, 30, 40 years ago now send their kids to Servite, Bosco, and Whittier Christian; also, many choose La Habra and La Serna over SP. This is a fact. SP’s feeder schools are now St. Hilary and public schools from Pico and Montebello. Great people live in those cities, but the athletes are not D1-PAC5 material folks. SP is not a D1-PAC5 school. The student body gets smaller every year and the $5000 annual tuition per student creates a situation where they cannot compete with the aforementioned schools. They can’t raise tuition because who is going to pay Servite, Bosco, or Whittier Christian leave tuition to send a child to SP – nobody in their right mind, that’s who! I give the new coach two, three, years max. I hope for the best for SP, but realistically speaking they are going to get dismantled before league play.

And don’t give me this crud about back in the day and the how SP beat Bosco 30 years ago. In our last two meetings 2008 and 2009, we destroyed SP to the point that for a minute I thought it was a Jr. Pee Wee Pop Warner team in SP uniforms.

transfer watcher

Let Aram do some work finding out who the transfer is. I can’t give it up that easy.

Brave dad is correct!!! His feeder schools are terrible. I know he will bring some out of area kids with him, but after freshman year tuition, getting to school every day and academic requirements kids may shy away. People are wowed by his preseason, but after you make it through that you still have a very tough league and very tough division to win. He won’t have the athletes he had at Carson coming in yearly, which even the playing field in those pac 5 games he did win. He is going to have to coach. We will see if he can coach w/ less talent. Carson knew that those losses would not affect their city section ranking. If they are 2-3 in preseason, then lose 1-2 games in league, CIF is going put them in a terrible bracket. Like it was mention Bosco, and servite run his area. I think he would have done better a private school that has better demographics to pull from like Alemany or something, but they are good over there. I don’t see this working out in the long run. St Paul is a tweener school just like St Francis… 1st or 2nd round exits nothing more….maybe less.

co

quarterback ross barrera from amat transferred to charter oak! today was his first day

maddog56

when are they going to come out with everyone schedule of games?

realityczech

co – so you’re gonna get excited about Amat’s 3rd string QB? That’s about the same as Los Altos being excited to get Tamayo a few years ago?

New York

ummmmm,
“tweener school” is hilarious, and it makes sense with their tradition of back flops which are tweener version of a full flip.

New York

Amat fans are sitting back and enjoying the sight of a CO blogger getting excited about receiving an Amat transfer…Amat still has the local cache, whether folks want to admit it or not.

AMAT 73

Well I guess someone didn’t read Aram’s conversation with Hags on the teams spring so far. co, I suggest you go over to Fred’s blog and read maybe why you got that transfer. Not saying anything bad or trying to imply anything about the young man but it would seem he has a better chance at CO than at AMAT going for the QB position as Santiago is gone and those are some big shoes to fill and I think it’s up for grabs . Good luck to the young man and I guess your happy because your getting a Lancer and that’s not a bad player to pick up contrary to the general consensus around here.

Not sure, but I think there was talk of Barrera to CO dating back to last offseason.

Who knows, maybe he’ll battle for the starting gig or play elsewhere.

He Wants To Play

Barrera is actually a pretty good athlete, but not a QB. He has a strong arm, but no accuracy, and makes poor decisions. When the coching staff dropped him to third string QB he didn’t like it. They tried to put him in another position, because he is a pretty decent athlete, but he didn’t want to play the other positions. He feels he is a QB and more power to him. So when he blew up at the coaches he was thrown off the tem. So the reality is he wasn’t going to play this coming year at Amat anyway. He decided to make the move because he wants to play football, and he feels he can compete for the QB position at CO. I hope he does get the position, because then we will know just how bad the QB will be. Again, he is a good athlete, but not a QB. This is the new transfer rule taking affect. Barrera is leaving his HS friends for the last three years to give football and more importantly the QB job a try. Don’t be shocked if he transfers back after football season so that he can graduate with his friends.

He Wants to Play

You are right Aram. He will compete for the QB position, but the coaches will see what Amat saw, he is not a QB. Last year Amat tried him at LB, where he showed some potential. But he can definately play, and he had gotten thrown off the team at Amat, so he wasn’t going to play at Amat anyway. It was either transfer somewhere or not play footbll his senior year.

Amat-xfer

Friends at Amat..ya but if you really were in the loop you would understand that “Little” is actually going over to be with his childhood friends. He was the QB with all these “little boys” from Flag all the way to Midget… not saying he was a good QB, but the QB. It is also a family tradition to go to amat, xfer to Charter Oak to try and play… then back to Amat…

Anyway, there are ties to CO in a big way, he will get a shot, but my bet is they know they are going to take their lumps at QB this season, so why waste it on a SR who has never played QB at the varsity level, when you can develop one of your pups and set the stage for next year????

Anyway, Dom is gonna have to show some magic as a playcaller this year because they are going to have to keep teams off balance and mix things up. They will not have a mobile QB who will scare you to run / throw like last year, they will not have a dominant RB (guy’s at RB are good, but be honest, are not dominant RB’s and most likely going to see time on other side of ball also, so little tired?), so going to have to game plan far more than last couple of years to set things up…. will be interesting for sure.

by the way, if “little” is the QB, CO not in the hunt for league title… wish him luck though to change things around and he is a good athlete, he will be on the field for that team.

Amar Fan #(-1)

Let me get this straight..
So when the Barrera kid was at Amat playing for the yellow & blue, he was a PAC 5 quality QB suiting up for Hagerty, but now that he’s transferred to COHS he sucks?

Really Amat? Very classy… You lancers must be very proud of yourselves by insulting and humiliating a young man who just gave you 3 years!

WARNING to parents and prospective football athletes considering Amat in the fall of 2012!

By the way, Amat’s other 2 QBs: Koa at 5′ 5″ @ 175 lbs. The other kid: doesn’t have a Varsity jock strap yet!

Cougertown

Monrovia has nothing on us. At Hacienda Heights Junior All American Cougars, Arizona St has offered 12 of our kids scholarships, that 12 d1’s and were not out of elementary school yet. Based our powder puff schedule(not our fault)and D1 talent we should be rated Number 1 in the area. Pound for Pound we are the baddest kitty’s around. We are looking to schedule up the preseason next year, but coach says nobody returns our calls.
You don’t want any part the the Kitty.
Now i just need to find out why they keep calling my grandma a COUGAR so much….She doesn’t live in Hacienda Heights, she lives in Monrovia.

Defense

Does anyone realize that COs defense is only losing 1 starter? And with last years offense scoring quickly, the “D” was on the field a lot! with the addition of an amat transfer the “d” is only stronger. With all this talk about not making a run for league, do u not realize defense wins championships?

Sgv baller

Ross Barrera a decent athlete. He was not going to play much at amat so he is going to school in his area.he also plays baseball and will now probably get playing time at charter oak next year.2 guys transferred out from amat.both where not key players.

MonroVian

@CougarTown,

WHAT?????? You obviously know nothing about nothing! Looks to me that you are a water head window licker who just says anything! Pendejo.

@Defense, I 100% agree with you on that one and CO. They have a potent young and fast Defense that has matured even more over the off season. And trust their backfield isn’t too shabby either. Look out for the Bolts!

” You Don’t Want No Green And White “

wow

SP coach is on a mission no doubt.

SPHS might go 7-3 this yr…

They will beat Amat by 3,

can’t wait.

New Top 5

1. St. Paul
2. Bishop Amat
3. La Habra
4. St Francis
5 La Mirada

Cougertown

@Monrovian
I was poking fun at YOU. I am surprised you even got it.
A Division 11 team rated the best in area? Yeah right. You guys lost to Arcadia, the highest rated team Mtown played last year. Your players will fatten up their stats on schools rated from 250 to what 900? or higher?
Then you will come on here and say what great seasons they had. At least have a preseason schedule worthy of a top pick.

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